It’s an unusual location for a medical practice, but for Sunnyvale resident Dimple Rao, 317 State St. in downtown Los Altos is home to her new business.

Rao, an accredited homeopathic consultant, opened Paññã Homeopathic Healing, her first practice in the United States, in April. She worked as a homeopathic consultant in Mumbai, India, before moving to California in 2004.

She said she is “thrilled” to be in Los Altos. The community, one “aware of its needs and wants,” according to Rao, was an enticing factor, but the multiple health shops sprinkled throughout the downtown area clinched the deal. After settling in, Rao said she believes she has much to offer to the community through her new practice.

Rao said she intends to introduce homeopathy’s unique style of treatment – centered on the physical, mental and emotional effects of chronic ailments and long-standing diseases on patients who could be healed via natural remedies.

“Homeopathy is a system of medicine that stimulates the body to heal itself,” she said. “The medicines are made from natural sources and given in very small doses that makes it safe, nontoxic and FDA approved. The prime principle of homeopathy is ‘Let like be cured by like.’”

Homeopathic remedies are developed based on the idea that any substance that produces symptoms in a healthy person can heal the same symptoms in a sick person.

Rao’s treatment process begins with an extensive case study. She asks questions ranging from the specificities of the ailment to the patient’s emotional reaction to the pain. The initial consultation costs $225 for adults, $175 for children.

The difficult part, Rao said, involves piecing together all aspects of the patient’s pain to determine a remedy.

“It’s like a portrait, or a jigsaw puzzle,” she explained. “All the pieces are on the floor, but when you put it together, a beautiful picture comes out.”

The remedy is a distillation of natural substances taken with water or sugar tablets. Rao prescribes a remedy one week after the first consultation. She has successfully treated more than 300 patients during 15 years of clinical practice using such a process.

Within the U.S., however, homeopathic treatment has received considerable criticism. While its remedies are, as Rao said, FDA regulated, the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine recommends that patients not replace “proven conventional care” with homeopathic treatment. She concedes that some people remain skeptical of homeopathy.

“Right now, I’m just focusing on giving good homeopathic care to those in need. Skepticism will always be there,” Rao said. “I just want to practice good homeopathy and if they’re happy with what they receive, that gives my life satisfaction and happiness.”

Rao has scheduled an open house 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 3, at Paññã Homeopathic Healing.